The Don Tore Up Our Divorce (Gemma and Cassian) novel Chapter 110

**Before Rain Touches Earth Memories Return With Gentle Warmth by Eli Dane Crest 110**

**Chapter 110**

**Cassian**

The words Gemma spoke felt like a riddle I couldn’t quite solve. What was she trying to convey?

For the longest time, I had believed that Lucien’s betrayal was just that—a betrayal, with Reyna caught in the chaos, a mere victim of circumstance. The thought that Reyna and Angela could have orchestrated something so malicious against Gemma and her mother was unfathomable to me.

The weight of humiliation pressed down on me like a heavy cloak. In the mafia, infidelity was a well-known “secret,” a dark undercurrent that flowed through our lives. Men had mistresses, and everyone accepted it. But those women, they understood their role; they knew the unspoken rules. I had never heard of one daring to inflict the kind of pain Gemma described.

Regret washed over me in a relentless tide. How could I have been so blind? Why hadn’t I sought the truth sooner?

Gemma and I had been married for three years. Although I wasn’t present every single day, I had absorbed bits of information through the whispers of nurses and doctors, painting a vague picture of Lisette’s decline.

They had told me about her devastating mental breakdown, a catastrophic result of unbearable emotional trauma.

And now… now it all began to make sense. This was not merely about Lucien’s foolishness.

Before her illness, Lisette was the epitome of a mafia wife—proud, sharp, and disciplined. She was a woman of high standards, born into a respectable family and raised with elegance and poise. She was destined to stand among the elite of the mafia world.

To be publicly shamed in front of so many powerful families… It was no wonder she shattered.

As I drove back, I found myself rubbing my temples, trying to ease the throbbing ache that had taken residence in my head.

I couldn’t believe it. Reyna? That Reyna? The one who had always excelled in her studies, the one who was reliable, kind, and sweet? The very same Reyna who had been my friend for years?

Could she truly be the person Gemma was describing?

“Has she been pretending all along?” I murmured to myself, the words barely escaping my lips as doubt crept in.

Days had passed without any physical connection between Gemma and me. But today, witnessing her unraveling, I felt an overwhelming urge to reach out. I rushed to comfort her, but she resisted me like a wild animal, thrashing in my grasp. Yet, even in that chaos, I could feel the softness of her skin against my hands, a reminder of the intimacy we once shared.

Damn it.

In a moment of desperation, I turned the car around, heading straight for the club. I needed something—anything—to dull the pain. Alcohol would have to suffice.

I settled into the private room we typically reserved for our closest friends, pouring myself a drink and allowing the amber liquid to wash over me in solitude.

It wasn’t long before Liam and Rhett made their entrance.

Liam was the first to break the silence. “What’s going on, Cassian? Still mired in divorce hell? Is that why you look like you’ve seen better days?”

They were my closest friends, and they were well aware of my ongoing battle to finalize my divorce with Gemma. The process had dragged on endlessly, and anyone in my position would be exhausted by now.

I shot him a quick glance but remained silent, opting instead to down the whiskey in my glass.

Rhett took a seat beside Liam. “Where’s Reyna? Isn’t she usually the first to show up for our hangouts?”

He pulled out his phone, likely ready to call her. I quickly interjected.

“Don’t call her. Not tonight.”

Liam didn’t push further. He settled beside me, sipping his drink in a shared silence.

After a lengthy pause, he finally ventured, “So… about those things online. Do you really think they hold any truth?”

I turned to meet his gaze, searching for sincerity. “What do you think?”

Liam hesitated, his expression shifting as he contemplated my question. “Honestly? I’m not sure. But Cassian… I never really saw her clearly either. Maybe there’s a side of her we’ve all overlooked.”

My frown deepened. “Are you being serious?”

“I am.” Liam poured us both another round, the whiskey swirling in the glass like the confusion in my mind. “Back in the day, you and Rhett always had her back. I kept quiet to maintain the peace.”

He took a sip, then added, “But I’ve never been fond of Reyna. She always seemed… artificial. Like a puppet playing a part.”

His serious demeanor caught my attention.

“If you’re starting to feel something’s off too, maybe it’s time to reassess.”

I looked at him—this friend who had stood by me through thick and thin—his honesty cutting through my haze of doubt.

“We’ve always judged Gemma, haven’t we?” he said softly, nursing his whiskey. “We’ve always assumed she was the problem. We’ve rushed to Reyna’s defense without question.”

He was right. I had been biased from the start, quick to assume Gemma was at fault while always ready to champion Reyna.

And Gemma—for three long years—had continued to love me and forgive me, even as I drained every last drop of affection she had to give.